


Happy Birthday To Me

by goingtothetardis



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Bakery AU, Birthday Cake, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Fluff, Loneliness, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-16
Updated: 2016-08-18
Packaged: 2018-08-09 06:27:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,677
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7790221
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/goingtothetardis/pseuds/goingtothetardis
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rose is shocked when a custom cake order is delivered to a one-man party rather than the large party he'd told her about when ordering the cake.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [jeeno2](https://archiveofourown.org/users/jeeno2/gifts).



> Jeeno2 shared this prompt with me, and honestly, it's all I could think about until I wrote it:  
>  _AU where Person A is a pastry chef and Person B comes to A’s pastry shop to order a really big and good-looking cake and A thinks that B probably has a big family or smth but it’s B’s birthday and he has no friends and is planning to eat it by himself but when A delivers cake B just starts crying bc he’s really lonely and they end up together eating that frickin cake_
> 
> I decided to make it two parts, and I'm already well into the second one, so I imagine I'll be posting it either today or tomorrow. 
> 
> Thanks to Jeeno for the quick read-through/beta.

The bells above the door to Bad Wolf Bakery jingle, and Rose Tyler looks up from the cake plans she’s working on to find a tall, skinny bloke in a brown, pinstriped suit standing at the counter. One hand is plunged into his pocket and the other awkwardly scratches the back of his neck as he shifts uncomfortably from one foot to another. 

Rose stands up from her desk and walks to the counter with a smile. “Hi, I’m Rose Tyler, and welcome to Bad Wolf Bakery. How can I help you today?” 

The bloke looks up at her introduction and gives her a disarming grin, his smile wide and genuine. 

_Oh._ Oh my. _That smile._

“Hullo, I'm James. And, ehm, I'd like to order a cake.” 

“Alrigh’, I can help you with that. What's the occasion? How many people do you need it for? Round, square, or custom? One tier or more?” Rose rambles off her usual spiel for patrons wanting to order a cake.

“ _Blimey_ , I had no idea ordering a cake was such a complicated affair. Well, it's a birthday cake,” he starts, but trails off as he seems to consider the rest of her questions. For a moment his eyes take on a rather sad and distant expression, but he quickly snaps back to the present and continues. “And oh, I think it's safe to say it'll be for at least thirty people or so.”

Rose scribbles down the information and glances up at James. “Ooooh, big party, yeah?” His mouth tightens slightly, and he simply nods in response. With a shrug, she asks, “Okay, were you wanting a specific design?”

“ _Wellllllll_ , I've always wanted to have a birthday cake that looks like one of the old police boxes. Is that possible?” He tugs his ear in a sort of endearing way, like he's almost embarrassed to request such a thing. 

“One thing you need to know about me, James, is that _anything_ is possible. I never say no to a challenge, and I'll always find a way to get the job done, even if it's not the most conventional way.” Rose prides herself on her stubbornness. It's a trait that's given her much success, an edge over the others, in a field filled with more than enough competition. Her mum always says she takes after her dad in this way. “An’ a police box will be no problem at all.”

“Easy peasy?” He asks before scrunching his nose in disgust. “Ugh, no, sorry.”

They laugh together, and when their eyes meet, Rose feels her cheeks warm. _Oh, she's in trouble_. James is fit and more than a little bit foxy, _and_ he's funny, with a good personality, one that seems to fit well with hers. But he's a client, and Rose is nothing if not professional. That means not making eyes at every bloke that walks in the door. 

“Easy peasy,” Rose echoes with a wink. “Would you like it to look exactly like a police box or would you like a multi tiered cake? I could do a small light on top, the police public call box as the middle layer, and on the base, I could make the doors.” She quickly sketches an idea on some scrap paper and pushes it across the counter for James to see. 

His eyes brighten at her sketches. “That's _brilliant_ ,” he enthuses. 

Rose smiles. “Now the most important question of all,” she says seriously, “is what flavor would you like?”

She opens her mouth to continue, but James blurts out, “ _Banana!!_ ” He blushes, and the tips of his ears turn pink, highlighting the freckles spattered across his skin. 

Rose smirks. “Okay, so banana. I can do banana cake for the whole or I can do a different flavor for each tier. Or…” she drags out the word to make sure he's paying attention. “I can make my signature cake. Caramel cheesecake between two layers of banana cake topped with white chocolate buttercream icing.”

James eyes glaze over at the description of her cake, and she swears she can almost see him drooling on the counter. 

“Oi! If you're gonna drool, there's a mop in the back.”

This snaps James back to the present, and she laughs. 

“Yeah, that sounds _molto bene_.”

“Do you want the whole cake the same flavor? I often advise–”

“The whole cake, yes,” James interrupts. 

Rose tries to ignore the dark look that crosses his face again, but instead of voicing a question, silently tucks his unusual reactions in a corner of her mind to consider later. 

“So I’m assumin’ this your birthday we're celebrating, yeah?” Rose asks as she finishes the form for the custom order cake. “What's the lucky number?”

James clears his throat and sniffs. “Yep!” he says with a pop to the ‘p’. “I’ll be thirty-three. And I look good, don't I?” He preens in front of her, a cocky smirk dancing on the corner of his lips.

Rose giggles. “You aren't half bad,” she admits. Clearly, his ego doesn’t need any more encouragement. 

James smiles widely at her response and then flicks his eyes around the rest of her shop. They linger for a few moments on the painting of a wolf surrounded with golden light, backed by a textured dark sky filled with galaxies and stars. “Nice painting,” he observes with interest. “Did you paint that?”

“Yeah,” Rose replies proudly. “I studied art at uni and decided to combine it with my interests in baking after graduation. It works well with cake design. I painted that as one of my capstone projects.” She didn’t mention that it won several awards, not only at her university but also around Great Britain. 

Continuing to observe the painting, James murmurs under his breath, loud enough for her to hear. “It suits you, somehow.”

Rose blushes furiously, and quickly turns to busy herself with some paperwork at her desk so he can’t see her reaction. His observation was quite accurate, even though he barely knows her, as she’d been going through a rough patch in her life, trying to fight her way back after that tosser Jimmy Stone derailed her uni experience (and life and financial stability) by a few years. During that time she’d identified strongly with the wolf, and the piece became something of an expression of her heart and soul. 

Clearing her throat, Rose gathers the final paperwork together and asks James a few more questions. “So James, it looks like I have everything. I just need to know if you’re picking up here or need a delivery.”

James looks over at her in surprise. “Oh, you deliver? Fantastic!”

“Yeah, where you live determines the fee. I’ll just have you write down your address, number, and preferred delivery date and time, and we’ll confirm with you a few hours in advance,” Rose requests. “Me and my partner will deliver the cake.”

“Your partner?” James asks with interest.

“Yeah, Donna. She’s in charge of the other bakery items, and I mostly do the cakes,” she explains with some bemusement. 

His face brightens considerably at her response. “Ooooh, your _partner_!” 

“Yeah, my partner,” Rose confirms. “What about her?”

James’s hand flies to his hair and he nervously threads his hands through the strands. Rose is entertained by his wide assortment of easy tells. 

“Um, no reason,” he stammers, looking like he would like it very much if the floor would swallow him whole. 

“Uh huh,” Rose comments, thoroughly amused. “Why?” she asks with a cheeky smile. “You interested?”

At this, James blushes furiously and turns to inspect the pastry items in the glass cases. “ _No_ ,” he declares forcefully. “I wasn’t sure what you meant by ‘partner’, that’s all.”

Rose decides to let him off the hook. “I’m just taking the mick out of ya,” she laughs and promptly changes the subject. “Donna and I opened the shop together last year, an’ she’s out on a delivery right now. You want something to go? She makes a _gorgeous_ pear almond tartlet.”

James blanches and makes a disgusted face. “Ew, no pears, ta.”

Giggling at his reaction, Rose suggests something she knows he’ll enjoy, if his enthusiasm for bananas was any indication. “How about the vanilla banana Mille-feuille? Made fresh this morning,” she sing-songs.

His face brightens, and she pulls one out from behind the counter and wraps it up to go. After ringing up his pastry, cake, and delivery fee, Rose watches as James saunters casually out of the shop, before turning left to head down the street. She shakes her head and turns back to her desk to continue working on the cake plans she was previously working on before James came inside. 

Her thoughts frequently turn to James, however, and she realizes she’s more than a little excited to tell Donna about their latest customer. 

And if she’s excited to begin work on his cake… and deliver it on his birthday… so she can wish him a very happy birthday… Well. No one else needs to know that but her.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Donna comes along for the ride in this chapter when Rose delivers the cake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Annnnnnnnd I realized this needs another chapter. It's already part done, so I'm hoping to get it posted tomorrow. Thanks again to Jeeno for the feedback.

One week later, Rose is in the back kitchen finishing up the final details to James’s cake, her tongue sticking out in concentration as she adds some shading to the dark blue icing that she’s used to craft the wood of the police box. She hears Donna walk in and drop her purse in the back office with a heavy thud. 

“Oh, Donna,” Rose calls, “Don’t forget–”

“Lemme guess!” Donna interrupts. “‘Don’t forget we have to deliver James’s cake today at 3PM.’ God forbid you let me forget _this_ delivery, Rose. You’ve been nattering on about it all week. ‘James’ this and ‘James’ that. Just ask him out already.”

Rose rolls her eyes and ignores Donna’s loud bluster about James. Their customer. That’s all. _Their customer._

Donna, as if she could hear the words coursing through Rose’s mind, spoke through her thoughts. “And clearly he’s not _just_ a customer, Rose. There’s no rule against fancying a client. It’s our business, and I think you should make a move. How long’s it been since you... you know? Had a good shag?” She blinks innocently at Rose. 

Rose can’t help the blush that stains her cheeks. “Oh, come off it, Donna. He was here for maybe thirty minutes, tops. ‘Sides, there was somethin’ kind of off about him. I dunno. Sad, somehow.”

Donna gazes speculatively at Rose for a moment before striding over to the shelves that holds their cake transportation tools. When she returns to the table with the appropriate boxes and stabilizing elements, she places them on the table and turns to Rose. “Maybe he needs someone like you,” she says softly. “From what you’ve told me, he sounds quite lonely.”

“But he said he’s havin’ a big party!” Rose argues. 

“Ah, but just because you have people in your life, doesn’t mean those people are _part_ of your life,” Donna stresses. “Trust me, I know. Took me years to find get away from my mum’s control of my life and find people who really care about _me_. Like you.” 

Giving Donna a half-hearted smile, Rose finishes the final elements to the cake and stands back to look at it. Donna whistles. “I think this is your best cake yet, Rose. You’d better take a picture of it for your portfolio.”

She’s inordinately pleased with James’s police box cake and is inclined to agree with Donna, even though she feels slightly embarrassed to admit it out loud. It’s a simple design, relatively speaking, but she took the time to make it as authentic as possible. She even walked around London to find an old police box to check the color for the icing. Donna ducks inside their office and returns with the camera they use to take photographs for their website and individual portfolios and begins photographing various angles of the cake. 

Rose ducks into the tiny loo next to their office and checks out her hair and makeup. She also takes a moment to make sure there aren’t any embarrassing stains on her clothing. That was one unfortunate lesson learned early on after she delivered a cake to a wedding with a splotch of red icing over one breast. 

“Rose, if he feels about you like you feel about him, he won’t care what you look like,” Donna hollers from the kitchen. “Now get your arse out here and help with this cake.”

Rose sighs but can’t help the smile that crosses her face. Donna’s a right terror at times, but she couldn’t ask for a better partner in crime. Er, baking.

**+++++**

Thirty minutes later, Rose and Donna pull up next to a older high rise building. James’s flat number is 910, and the two bakers look at each other in horror.

“Rose, if you make me haul this up another dozen bloody set of stairs, I swear to–”

“Oi! Donna, that was _one_ time. Mind you, it was one time too many, in my opinion, but we learned our lesson, didn’t we? No heels on the job, no matter how good they make our legs look,” Rose recalls, wincing at the memory. “And ‘sides. Maybe there’s a lift,” she adds hopefully. 

Donna makes a noise of skeptical disbelief before opening the door to their delivery van and walking to the back. “At least we got a parking place right up front,” she calls out.

While Donna preps the cake, Rose walks over to the door and calls up to James’s flat. “Hullo,” a despondent voice answers.

“James? Yeah, it’s Rose. Rose Tyler, from Bad Wolf Bakery. Donna and I are here to deliver your cake. Buzz us in?”

“Rose!” The voice on the other end responds with more enthusiasm than before, and Rose tries to fight the butterflies in her stomach at the sound of James’s voice. “Brilliant, come on up.”

The door buzzes open, and Rose shoves an old newspaper under the door to prop it open. She returns to the van, and together, she and Donna expertly transfer the cake from the van to its carrying position. Once inside the building, they breathe a collective sigh of relief when a lift is visible at the end of the hall. 

“I can’t tell you how glad I am to see that!” Donna exclaims. “I’d make you call your bloke and have him haul his cake up himself.”

Rolling her eyes, Rose takes the bait. “He’s not my ‘bloke’, Donna. And no, you wouldn’t do that, because he paid for us to deliver it, and we’re gonna follow through. Right?”

Donna grumbles to herself, and Rose smirks. 

The lift dings at the appropriate floor, and the door opens. A few other residents wait for them to step out and stare at them curiously as they lug the awkward cake box down the hall. The door to 910 flies open as soon as they reach it, and a beaming James, dressed in a NASA t-shirt and slim fitting jeans, holds the door open for them. 

“Rose!” He smiles widely at her, a silly kind of thing that makes Rose’s heart flutter, and they stand there a moment grinning at each other with matching dopey smiles. Rose can’t even be bothered to care. 

“Oi,” Donna gripes, “I’m Donna, by the way. Donna Noble since you didn’t ask. Do you have a kitchen?” Donna nods toward the cake box still held between herself and Rose. And before either Rose or James can interject, Donna mumbles loudly under her breath. “Honestly, they look at each other and forget anyone else is in the room.” 

Rose and James quickly avert their eyes, and James clears his throat. “Er, yeah, sorry. Straight ahead. My flat’s not very big, so you won’t miss it.”

“What? It’s not bigger on the inside?” Rose teases. She looks around his flat and is instantly distracted by the vast amount of organized clutter lying about. Any wall space not filled with shelf after shelf of books is covered by intricate star maps. As she and Donna walk the few steps to his kitchen, she notices that almost every surface is covered in some sort of science gadget. Telescopes are stacked into the corner of his living space, between the window and his bed.

After they place the cake on the counter, Rose turns to James when she realizes one important detail. “Can you even fit thirty people inside your flat? Are you sure we should have delivered here?” 

James’s face flames bright red, and he tugs on an ear, clearly uncomfortable about something. His gaze shifts to the floor. “Well, about that. For a while I thought about throwing my party at work, but what kind of person orders a custom cake for a work party? And then I thought about inviting some people down to the pub, but who wants to go out–”

“Oi, Spaceman!” Donna interrupts. “What are you not saying?” 

James sighs loudly. “There’s not really a party. Don’t have anyone to invite, so I ordered the cake for myself. Happy birthday to me and all that.” The pain and loneliness in his voice is evident, despite the way he tries to make light of the situation. 

Rose’s meets Donna’s incredulous gaze, and Rose’s heart aches for this man who ordered a birthday cake to eat by himself. 

“Well, that’s rubbish,” Donna states matter-a-factly. “You’ve got me and Rose, and we’re a riot, aren’t we? The life of the party.”

Rose laughs. “Absolutely. So when’s the party? Consider us guests.”

James’s eyes brighten, and he straightens imperceptibly. “Well,” he drawls, “I have to head into work for a few hours, but I was planning to eat the cake this evening. If you’re sure you really want to come, why don’t you come over around 7?”

Donna takes a moment to inspect the flat before refocusing on James. “Alright. We’ll see you later, then. Come on, Rose. It’s time to go shopping.” 

“Right, Donna, why don’t you head down to the van? I’ll be down in a mo’,” Rose gives Donna a meaningful look, and Donna gathers their shipping supplies and leaves the flat, closing the door softly behind her. 

“James…” she starts, but he cuts her off.

“Look, Rose, I don’t want your pity. I’ve had enough of that to last for a lifetime,” James bites out.

Rose crosses her arms and chews on her lip to keep the words she really wants to say from escaping. “Then what do you want?” she asks.

“Some mates? People to call my family? I lost–” He stops and takes a deep breath before continuing. “I lost my family several years ago, all of them. They’re all gone now. And the cake…” 

“And the cake–” Rose prompts when he doesn’t continue.

“My mum used to make us cakes on our birthdays. Whatever we wanted. I always asked for stars or planets. And this is the first year I’ve ordered a cake since… well, since it happened.”

Rose is bursting with curiosity about his family, but she knows Donna is waiting and asking such personal questions of a man she barely knows, on his birthday, no less, feels slightly wrong. Instead, Rose smiles and walks over to James, giving him a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek. “Happy birthday, James. You can have my hand to hold, if you want.” She squeezes his hand once and releases it.

On her way to the door, she turns to him. “Oh, and since we aren’t coming back for a few hours, you’ll need to keep the cake in the fridge. Bye!” She winks and leaves his flat.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> James gets the birthday party he wasn't expecting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here's the completion of this little story. ;) I had a lot of fun writing it, so I hope you enjoy it!! I decided to throw in a few other characters at the end, because I thought a bigger party would be more fun. I almost got cavities while writing the ending, so I hope you are assured of the fact that James will no longer have to live a lonely life. <3
> 
> Continued thanks to Jeeno2 for looking this over.

Donna’s waiting in the driver’s seat, so Rose hops into the passenger side when she exits the building. 

“What was that all about?” Donna asks. 

Rose stares out the window, deep in thought about James. “Hmmmm?”

“Why’d you send me down early?”

“Oh, I just wanted to wish James a happy birthday. _Without_ you watching my every move.”

“I resent that,” Donna mutters good naturedly. 

Rose rolls her eyes. “So, what’s this about shopping?”

“Well, now that we’ve got someplace to be tonight, we need to find _you_ something more interesting to wear.”

Scoffing, Rose asks, “What’s wrong with jeans and a hoodie?” She pauses as the words sink in. “Okay, I see your point.”

Rose’s phone buzzes in her lap, and it’s an unknown number with an image attached. Curious, she opens the message. It’s a picture of the police box cake with an attached note: _Rose! I found the note with your mobile number attached inside the cake box. I’m so, so sorry I didn’t even look at the cake or thank you for it when you were here. Rude, I know. It’s a bad habit of mine. The cake is even better than I imagined, and now I don’t want to eat it._

Donna’s driving with an expression on her face that’s just a _wee_ bit too casual. “So, you slipped him my number, yeah?” Rose asks in exasperation. 

“Well, you weren’t doing anything about it. I merely gave him the means to contact you.”

“Riiiiight. Sure, okay.” Rose sits quietly for a few moments as they drive through the city. “I was thinkin’ we could invite Mickey and Martha, Jack, and maybe Sarah Jane?”

“To James’s place?” Donna’s tone suggests she’s surprised with Rose’s suggestion. 

“Yeah, I don’t think he has many – or any – mates, and with his family gone… I dunno, I jus’ thought it might be a nice surprise. Plus, that cake’s too good to eat all alone.” Rose is pleased when Donna agrees, and while Donna drives to Henrick’s, Rose calls their friends to set up a plan for that evening.

**+++++**

By the time 6:30 rolls around, Rose is bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet with nerves. She found a cute dress at Henrick’s, a dark blue dress with large purple roses and green leaves. Normally she doesn’t go for the cliche rose prints, but she’d loved the dress, and Donna ultimately encouraged her to hand over the money to the cashier. Rose pairs the dress with her white Chucks and throws her hair into a ponytail before walking the few blocks to Bad Wolf Bakery to pick up the drinks and disposable dishware they purchased for the party.

Donna picks her up in her little blue car, and Rose chews her thumbnail during the drive. Giving Rose a sideways glance, she smirks. “You look nervous.”

Rose quickly pulls her thumb out of her mouth and places it in her lap. “No, I jus’... I jus’ hope James isn’t upset we invited more people, that’s all.”

“It’ll be fine, Rose,” Donna soothes. “Now, let’s talk about how you and James kept making eyes at each other the whole time we were there.”

Rose blushes but is loathe to let Donna win this one. “Why are you so interested? Maybe _you’re_ the one who needs to give him your number.”

“Ugh, no, that skinny streak of nothing?” Donna makes a face. “It’s the tall, skinny blokes that always catch your eye, Rose. You have a type. Admit it.”

She sighs in defeat. “Fine, I have a type.” And blimey, did James fit that type perfectly with his gorgeous brown hair, chocolate brown eyes and his long, lanky body and a nice bum to go with it. 

Before they know it, they’re at James’s flat, and the rest of their friends are waiting outside the building. Rose quickly explains the situation, leaving out the more personal parts about James’s family. They’ve all been friends for years, a mix of childhood and university friends. They’d invited Sarah Jane, a regular at the bakery, but she has other plans already. As Rose suspects, they’re all game for an impromptu birthday party celebration.

In the lift, Jack riddles Rose with questions. “So what’s he look like, Rose? Is tall and skinny?” At Donna’s enthusiastic nod of her head, Jack grins lecherously. “So, have you made a move on him yet? It’s been a while for you, hasn’t it?”

Rose groans. “God, you guys, stop it. Leave him alone, promise me that. Please?” 

Mickey laughs. “Oh boy, I haven’t seen her this bad since that older bloke with the big ears came to the bakery for a while.” His laughter is cut short when Martha lightly punches his arm. 

Shooting Martha a grateful look, she sighs but leaves a goodnatured grin on her face. They’ve been through a lot together, and she’ll be really surprised if they don’t get on well with James. 

Once they reach James’s floor, they all tumble out of the lift, and Rose leads the way to the 910. Chewing on her lip, she waits for James to open the door, and when he does, they all yell out a loud, “ _Happy Birthday!_ ”

James stands frozen in place for several long seconds. He’s changed back into his brown suit, which Rose eyes appreciatively, and his hair is artfully tousled. His wide-eyed gaze flicks to Rose, and she smiles widely at him, letting her tongue peek out of the corner of her mouth. When he sees her smile, he relaxes instantly. “Erm, what’s all this? Not that I don’t want you here, because it’s brilliant! Lovely, even! But I wasn’t expecting anyone but Rose and Donna, and–”

“Oh, stuff it, you,” Donna says airily as she bustles into his flat, arms laden with bags. “We decided to bring a party to you. That’s Mickey and Martha, bloody adorable, the pair of them. And–”

“And I’m Jack Harkness,” Jack interrupts smoothly. “Pleasure to meet you. James, is it?”

“Look out for ‘im, mate,” Mickey advises. “Jack’ll flirt with anything that talks.” Jack shrugs, unashamed. 

Donna heads to the kitchen like she owns it, and the others follow behind. Rose hangs back to talk to James. “I hope it’s okay. It’s just, it’s your birthday, and the cake, and I– We didn’t want you to celebrate on your own, so we brought our friends.”

“Rose, it’s fine, really. It means a lot that you care so much.” He ruffles his hair with a hand before continuing. “Anyway, you promised me a hand to hold?” James holds out his hand and wiggles his fingers.

“Wha’?” Rose asks before remembering her earlier promise. She laces her fingers with his, and gasps softly when his thumb brushes hers. Their hands fit together perfectly, and they smile at each other before following the others to the kitchen. Once there, Donna and Jack exchange knowing looks when they notice James and Rose holding hands. 

Donna has pulled the cake out from the fridge, and Rose is amazed he was able to fit it inside at all. “I’m very good,” he answers her questioning look. 

“Oh, I’m sure you are,” Jack mutters under his breath, and Rose blushes. James chokes on a breath next to her. 

While Donna and Rose prep the cake with candles, amidst admiring comments from their friends, Martha asks James a few questions about his profession. Rose listens in with interest. 

“I’m an astronomer at the Royal Observatory,” he explains, “and I’m considering going back to teach physics and astronomy at university.”

“That explains the NASA shirt and star charts,” Donna observes. “So you really are a spaceman.”

“Yup!” 

Before Donna and Rose cut the cake, they sing a lovely rendition of the Happy Birthday song, during which, James finds Rose’s hand again and grips it tightly. She peeks up at him and is surprised to see his eyes shining with emotion. He blinks, looks up with a deep breath, and when he turns to face to her again, all she can see is a happy, relaxed smile and warm, brown eyes. 

When the song is over and he blows out the candles, Rose announces, “Now make a wish!”

James takes a deep breath and lifts her hand to his lips, kissing it gently. “I don’t have to. I think it already came true.”


End file.
